[blokosss]

@gnomen : what is the year of production of yours ?

 

[roskodan]

In that case 700EUR doesn't sound that good to me. I got brand new ones for 800-900EUR. Bought some flawless 2nd hand too, with warranty, for 700-750EUR. Scratches, no warranty, 600EUR, maybe? Probably 500-550EUR in my book. At any rate they PEQ great.

 

[Thenewguy007]

Thanks a lot for your feedbacks on this badboy, latest news : the HD800 which is proposed to me is a model of 2009 !
The condition seems ok (some minor scratches, new cable (original), new pads).
My concerns are :
- The age : can a headphone driver naturally deteriorates after >10 years ?,
- And the model : the HD800 was corrected (in 2012? ) after it was launched in 2009, but I don't know if the sound changed dramatically.
The hd800 non "s" interests me more as it is said to be easier to equalize.

No driver degradation. There are headphones from the '70s that still work perfectly.
There was even some talk about very early models sounded better, but people concluded it was the earpads that were changed.
The only degradation would be the earpad & the padded headband part, both of which can be replaced.

 

[gnomen]

@gnomen : what is the year of production of yours ?

Purchased in 2015. No sign of wear or other degradation. I would not expect any problems with the drivers. It’s just a question of market value. Some headphones stay in the box and are like new, years later. Others are hammered. Mine were used 3-5 times a week for six years before I got the Utopias in February and still look fine.

 

[Oberst Oswald]

Maybe off the beaten track here but I need some advice for the HD-800... the stock single end cable does not last. Bought 2 and they only last about a year or two. Had enough. Anybody have a suggestion on a single end, 6 to 10 foot cable that is durable. I'm close to 70 yrs old so I don't need a cable that the ears my dogs would enjoy. There are so many cables out there that I don't want to pay $300. + and find they sound great but don't last. The stock cables were fine for me but the rubber coating would kind of rot away I guess from the oils of my hands. Also have kind of the same problem (cable breaks at the connection) with the Audeze 2 so I would like a lead to a cable for these also if somebody knows. Thanks.

 

[blokosss]

Hi, the HD800 is on its way, thanks for enlightening me in this choice
the seller offers me a balanced cable of a HD800s he owns but has no use for.
I hope i'll be able to tame the beast with PEQ.

 

[wormsdriver]

If you're getting such an early serial number hd800, I'd suggest you use something like this to make sure the drivers don't rattle when playing lower frequencies. (go under "quality" - Bass shaker)

 

[blokosss]

Thanks, I received the HD800 so these tools can be helpfull
For now I'm playing with PEQ :
https://github.com/jaakkopasanen/AutoEq/blob/master/results/oratory1990/harman_over-ear_2018/Sennheiser HD 800/Sennheiser HD 800 ParametricEQ.txt

 

[roskodan]

I'm using the AutoEQ oratory1990 preset too as of lately. Kind of didn't feel 100% all right with me the first time I tried it, but after a couple of weeks of back and forth (also between the other presets fom AutoEQ as well as ASR) and comparing to my Clear (no peq) and LCD2C (with peq), it really became a must have, and still is since then, been 4 months using it now.

I also added an additional bass shelf band, feels much better with it to me, not surprisingly, since the AutoEQ presets seems to fall slightly short off Harman in the bass (as opposed to the stock oratory1990 preset for the HD800, or any other headphone really).

Which is the following.

Low Shelf version (inspired by ASR's Amirm PEQ style):

Filter 10: ON LS Fc 75 Hz Gain 4.0 dB Q 1.0

Same as Low Shelf version only (eyeballed in PEACE) using Peak filter:

Filter 10: ON PK Fc 20 Hz Gain 4 dB Q 0.35

 

[blokosss]

Great links thanks, I do not aim at the harman curve but i pretty agree on these :

LS Fc 30 Hz Gain 8.0 dB Q 1.0
LS Fc 75 Hz Gain 4.0 dB Q 1.0
PK Fc 5700 Hz Gain -6.0 dB Q 3

 

[blokosss]

Well after some time with hd800 (I've been wanting to listen to them for years), going back and forth with the Clear and Sundara (Topping A90 ballanced), hd800 is a clear winner for me, Sundara would be second. I expected a wow effect, but I already have very good HPs, so no wow effect !
BUT hd800 is about precision, and that's what I was looking for.

 

[roskodan]

Same feeling here about the HD800, it's just special. But feel the same about the Clear as well. Whichever I put on my head, stays on my head. Mine is a 2017 Clear with very worn pads. Both are very revealing of upstream gear interactions.

 

[robo24]

Not sure if it's been mentioned on this thread yet, but I'm getting new life out of my 800 SDR with the Hagerman Tuba tube amp, especially with some tube rolling. I was expecting to sell mine soon to fund some other things, but this amp has me holding on to them now. Also excellent with the 820 I have. It's detailed, not especially tubey sounding, a bit mid-forward, airy, and I'm liking it better than the iCAN Pro in tube modes with my favorite tubes and it's less than half the price. Anyway, another option for those who don't want to spend a fortune on a tube amp. It seems to bring out the best in my ZMFs too.

 

[JamieMcC]

Maybe off the beaten track here but I need some advice for the HD-800... the stock single end cable does not last. Bought 2 and they only last about a year or two. Had enough. Anybody have a suggestion on a single end, 6 to 10 foot cable that is durable. I'm close to 70 yrs old so I don't need a cable that the ears my dogs would enjoy. There are so many cables out there that I don't want to pay $300. + and find they sound great but don't last. The stock cables were fine for me but the rubber coating would kind of rot away I guess from the oils of my hands. Also have kind of the same problem (cable breaks at the connection) with the Audeze 2 so I would like a lead to a cable for these also if somebody knows. Thanks.

I had the same problem myself in the end made myself a 4 meter cable out of the Mogami star quad professional mini microphone cable it's nice and flexible and sounds to me better than the original. The extra length adds versatility.
While I made mine myself what I'm hoping to convey is a inexpensive mass produced product for the professional market can give great results without spending hundreds.

Try a Google search for Mogami hd800 cable see what turns up.

 

[ecva]

Misodiko leather headband pad. I was waiting for someone to do this and as soon as I saw it I quickly jumped on it. Now it matches the misodiko leather earpads. The fit is a pain as the holes were quite different from the og pads. I barely got it on and still, the ends were a little loose. So while it looks great, there's still some room for improvement around the fitting holes. A good alternative minus the fit issue and it only cost me $10 from where I ordered it.